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| The Insider | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Also known as | omg! Insider (2013–2014) |
| Genre | Entertainment newsmagazine |
| Presented by | Louis Aguirre Debbie Matenopoulos |
| Composers | Michael Egizi (2004–2017) Joel Beckerman (2013–2015) Eric Allaman (2013–2015) Dan Beyer (2007) Kevin Frazier |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 13 |
| No. of episodes | 4,074(3,395 weekdays; 679 weekend) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Linda Bell Blue (2004–2013) Brad Bessey (2013–2016) Jeffrey Wilson (2016–2017) |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 21 minutes |
| Production companies | Paramount Domestic Television (2004–2006) (seasons 1–2) CBS Paramount Domestic Television (2006–2007) (seasons 2–4) CBS Television Distribution (2007–2017) (seasons 4–13) |
| Original release | |
| Network | Syndication CBS |
| Release | September 13, 2004 (2004-09-13) – September 9, 2017 (2017-09-09) |
| Related | |
| Entertainment Tonight | |
The Insider is an Americansyndicatednewsmagazine television program that was distributed byCBS Television Distribution. The program premiered in first-run syndication on September 13, 2004 and ended on September 9, 2017, as a spin-off ofEntertainment Tonight, which originated the concept as a segment that took viewers "behind closed doors" and gave them "inside" information on stories and topics of interest from throughout the entertainment industry.
When it became a separate program, it shifted toward atabloid direction, and had several format changes throughout its thirteen seasons on the air before settling on a final format at the start of the 2011–12 season, which shed many of the tabloid elements and became more of a straight rundown of entertainment news, providing coverage of events and celebrities, interviews and inside looks at upcoming film and television projects.
The program's weekday broadcasts wereanchored byLouis Aguirre andDebbie Matenopoulos; its weekend editions were anchored byMichael Yo andKeltie Knight, who also served as correspondents for the weekday editions.
Starting out with a bi-coastal format, the program was originally hosted byPat O'Brien – who was based inHollywood atParamount Studios Stage 28, whereEntertainment Tonight's set was also housed at the time – andLara Spencer – who was based atMTV'sOne Astor Plaza studio inNew York City, overlookingTimes Square. In its first season,The Insider originally maintained a news-heavy format, making way for a direction where subjects such as a pair ofanorexic nervosa twin sisters from Australia (who died in an April 2012 house fire) were regularly featured in sweeps periods, along with other fringe stories such astrue crime stories and theNadya Suleman story, which had little or nothing to do with the entertainment industry.
O'Brien – who was originally co-host of syndication competitorAccess Hollywood from 1997 to 2004 – remained co-host ofThe Insider until March 5, 2008, when he was replaced withDonny Osmond. O'Brien returned to the program one month later after Osmond declined to take on a role as a permanent host. During the first four years she was on the program, Spencer hosted the program solo at times due to O'Brien's varied personal problems, which forced him to take time off in extended periods to address them. The original theme song – which was changed after the second season, coincided with a change in distributors toCBS Paramount Domestic Television afterCBS assumed ownership ofViacom's television production and syndication operations in their December 2005 split – was performed byRichie Sambora.
For its fourth season, production of the program was moved to New York City full-time in September 2007. O'Brien relocated fromLos Angeles to join Spencer in a new studio based within theMinskoff Theatre inManhattan (where the musical adaptation ofThe Lion King is based), which featured unobstructed views of Times Square, nearby the MTV studio facilities and also within One Astor Plaza.
On September 8, 2008,The Insider began broadcasting inhigh-definition television; concurrently,The Insider relocated primary production and studio operations back to Los Angeles, joining sister programET at Stage 4 at theCBS Studio Center, one of the final steps involving the incorporation of Paramount's former syndication arm,Paramount Domestic Television, into CBS' distribution arms following the earlier CBS-Viacom split and the adoption of the then-new CBS Television Distribution name.[1] The set's focal point was a large life-size 3D construction of the program's logo, which was formerly used as the main portion of the set where segments took place until the September 2009 retooling of the program to incorporate a panel format.
The New York-based aspect of the program was also abandoned, with Spencer relocating to Los Angeles and becoming a solo host, joined by correspondentsVictoria Recano,Steven Cojocaru and Cheryl Woodcock. In the move, O'Brien became a Los Angeles-based correspondent for the program;[2] however ten days later on September 18, he was dismissed permanently fromThe Insider for comments he made in a staff email after a trip toIowa, where he directed comments specifically at a mid-show daily segment presented by Spencer that debuted at the start of the season. O'Brien proceeded to involve a rundown of the prices and labels of her clothing and accessories (which were referenced in the segment), saying that it made the viewers he talked to "vomit".[3] Despite this pointed criticism, the segment continued to air at the end of every edition until Spencer's departure, expanding to the point where viewers made amultiple choice on what Spencer would wear on the next broadcast. O'Brien would appear one more time on the final episode ofThe Insider nine years later, congratulating the show's staff and crew for their work.
After the departure of O'Brien, the show was hosted by Spencer alone until January 2009, whenSamantha Harris (who had previously served as a correspondent forE! News) joined the program as a permanent co-host. Harris also provided analysis and commentary as part of her duties as co-host ofABC'sDancing with the Stars until her departure from the reality competition series at the start of 2010.
During September 2009, the program converted to a panel format, featuring a roundtable discussion and debate format (similar toPardon the Interruption or the "Hot Topics" segment ofThe View) with three permanent co-hosts and a guest host discussing entertainment topics, although that was also modified as actressNiecy Nash became a fourthde facto host and the program added a rotating fifth guest host slot. As a result, the on-air correspondents were effectively dismissed, with stories being compiled byEntertainment Tonight staff or off-camera personnel.
The format was changed once again in September 2010, restoring it to a more traditional entertainment newsmagazine concept with Spencer andChris Jacobs as co-hosts. Industry analysts had surmised that the change was a precursor to testing Spencer in the traditionalET format without placing her on that show, asEntertainment Tonight's longtime primary anchorMary Hart had announced her retirement from that program at the end of the 2010–2011 season; however,Nancy O'Dell would be appointed to succeed Hart as co-anchor at the end of May 2011.
On March 5, 2011, CBS Television Distribution announced thatKevin Frazier would become co-anchor of the program, replacing Jacobs, who moved toEntertainment Tonight as a correspondent for that program.[4] Twelve days later on March 17, it was announced that Spencer would leave the program by the start of May to become the lifestyle anchor forGood Morning America.[5] Spencer was replaced byBrooke Anderson, who had served as co-host ofHLN'sShowbiz Tonight. During the week of theWedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, Anderson split her reporting duties between CNN andThe Insider.[6] At the start of its seventh season on September 4, 2011, the program was refocused more as a straight entertainment news show, with many of the tabloid elements of the Spencer/O'Brien era being removed; additionally, the program's website was refocused to be more of a straight competitor toTMZ.
On October 24, 2012, CBS Television Distribution reached abrand licensing and content agreement withYahoo! to pool content between the latter's celebrity/gossip news division,omg!, andThe Insider. Through this agreement, the program was retitled asomg! Insider on January 7, 2013.[7] On January 1, 2014, executive producer Brad Bessey announced in a video on the program'sFacebook account[8] that the show would restore its original title on January 6, while retaining all other elements. The reinstatement of the show's original title resulted from Yahoo CEOMarissa Mayer's decision to rebrand of some of Yahoo's platforms, including "omg!", which changed its name to "Yahoo Celebrity"; however, both entities continue to share stories and content with one other. The Yahoo! partnership was discontinued on September 12, 2016.
In August 2014, Kevin Frazier departedThe Insider to become co-anchor the weekday edition ofEntertainment Tonight, on which he had previously served as a weekend anchor and correspondent from 2004 to 2011. He was replaced on September 8 of that year byLouis Aguirre, who joined the program after fifteen years as host of the similarly formattedDeco Drive onFox affiliateWSVN inMiami.[9]
On June 16, 2015,The Wrap reported that special correspondentDebbie Matenopoulos would replaceThea Andrews as co-host ofThe Insider; Matenopoulos replaced Andrews, who departed from the program, on July 6.[10]
Because of declining ratings, CBS Television Distribution announced the cancellation ofThe Insider after 13 years on February 7, 2017. The final show aired on September 9.[11]
The Insider aired on television stations in certain markets throughout the United States as half of a one-hour entertainment news block that also included the show from which it was spun off,Entertainment Tonight.
Three versions ofThe Insider were previously compiled and made available to broadcasters before 2009; a "standalone" version (which largely omitted references toET), and two other versions designed to precede or followET with promotions outlining stories to be featured on that day's edition of the latter show, in addition to those stories to air on the nextInsider broadcast. After 2009, only a standalone version withoutET continuity was produced, as carriage of the program outside of primary markets was reduced to lower-tier stations and lower profile timeslots (often inlate-night television or on a same-day or day-behind basis indaytime television), making complementary coverage between the two shows impossible.
Outside of the United States,The Insider aired onBig CBS Love in India,ETC in thePhilippines, andMBC 4 in theMiddle East and North Africa afterEntertainment Tonight.
In Australia,Network Ten had airedThe Insider a day behind the American broadcast alongside sister programEntertainment Tonight on weekday mornings, with a rebroadcast airing on sister network10 Peach after midnight; Ten and Eleven removed the show from their schedules on November 1, 2013. The program also formerly aired on theFoxtel ownedpay television channelArena, and in Canada onHamilton, Ontario basedCHCH.
An Arabic adaptation titledTHE INSIDER بالعربي began airing onDubai TV at 12 November 2017.[12][13]
An Arabic adaptation titledThe Insider Bel Arabi – TheInsiderAR (Arabic version of The Insider (TV series) بالعربي The Insider, began airing onDubai TV in November 2017.[14]
The international rights are distributed by CBS Studios International.[15][16]
| Country/language | Local title | Channel | Date aired/premiered |
|---|---|---|---|
 Arab World | The Insider Arabia (The Insider بالعربي – بالعربي The Insider – The Insider Bil Arabi – The Insider بالعربي TheInsiderAR The Insider Arabia – The Insider Arabia – The Insider بالعربي – Inside Take The Inside Take)[17] | Abu Dhabi TV. Dubai TV.[18] | November 12, 2017[19] |